A division bench consisting of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih granted Tuteja interim relief, considering that other co-accused in the case had previously received relief from the Supreme Court.
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NEW DELHI: On Thursday(14th Nov), the Supreme Court provided former Chhattisgarh bureaucrat Anil Tuteja with interim protection from arrest in response to his appeal challenging the Allahabad High Court’s refusal to quash criminal proceedings against him in Uttar Pradesh related to the Chhattisgarh liquor scam case.
A division bench consisting of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih granted Tuteja interim relief, considering that other co-accused in the case had previously received relief from the Supreme Court.
“Issue notice. Even if the petitioner (Tuteja) appears before the trial court per the High Court’s order, he shall not be taken into custody,” directed the Court.
The Supreme Court also requested responses from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the State of Uttar Pradesh regarding Tuteja’s petition, scheduling the next hearing for January 21.
BRIEF FACTS
On October 4, the Allahabad High Court declined to quash proceedings against Tuteja, Anwar Dhebar (the brother of Raipur’s mayor), and two others in connection with the Chhattisgarh liquor scam, involving allegations of a Rs 2,000 crore liquor syndicate in Chhattisgarh under the Congress Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s tenure.
The ED registered a money laundering case on July 4, 2023, discovering a link to Uttar Pradesh during its investigation. Witness testimonies revealed details about a Noida-based company illegally awarding tenders for supplying holograms (used to authenticate liquor bottles and ensure excise duty compliance) to Chhattisgarh’s Excise Department.
Consequently, on July 30, 2023, following ED’s communication, an FIR was filed in Uttar Pradesh against Tuteja and others.
On April 8, 2024, the Supreme Court had previously quashed the ED’s July 2023 money laundering case, citing the absence of a predicate offense as per the PMLA’s criteria. Following this, Tuteja and co-accused Anwar Dhebar, Arun Pati Tripathi, and Niranjan Das petitioned the Allahabad High Court to quash the UP police FIR.
The High Court, however, held that even though the Supreme Court quashed a related money laundering case, the criminal proceedings in UP could continue. The High Court noted that the witness statements collected under Section 50 of the PMLA by the ED, shared with UP police, remain valid for UP’s ongoing criminal proceedings, thus denying the request to quash the case.
This led Tuteja and the other accused to appeal before the Supreme Court. Upon hearing the matter, the Supreme Court noted that some respondents in connected cases were yet to be served and proceeded to issue fresh notices.
Case Title: Anil Tuteja v. Station House Officers and Others
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